The Challenge
Kelp is a cloud-based low-code platform for building interactive data applications, without traditional code. Its creation was inspired by the work of the Pleeco team and their decade-long experience in developing data-driven applications for investment banking. They developed this new way of creating data apps, faster than traditional coding but also simple enough for non-developers to use.
With such a wide net of potential users, the Pleeco team was looking for a partner that would not only help them launch, but also help them define their positioning in a competitive space and find the best product-market fit.
Client
Industry
Low-Code Tools
Services
Product Launch
Showcasing the power of Kelp to gain initial traction
We initially hypothesized that the ideal target market for Kelp would be Data Scientists, but after several rounds of research and testing, we found that DevOps professionals are a better fit. They were more involved in building internal tools and weren’t averse to substituting traditional code for more efficient approaches.
As the project coincided with the pandemic, the Kelp team developed an interactive data application that was tracking Covid-19 cases worldwide. By promoting the app we attracted their attention and showcased the power of the app.
The marketing activities around the dashboard attracted 300 signups on Kelp’s wait list in under one month.
Driving the conversation to steady growth
Based on the feedback from the initial activities, we implemented several short-term and long-term growth strategies, from more buzz-building campaigns, to website and SEO optimization, listing Kelp on social bookmarking sites, and creating educational content around the tool. The dev-ops audience proved to be challenging to reach through traditional media channels, but they were highly active in Reddit, Facebook and LinkedIn groups. By asking for feedback and starting conversations, we were able to attract even more early users to sign up.
This activity alone helped us gain another 800 early access subscribers in the following two months, without any paid activities.
In parallel, while Kelp was preparing for the beta launch, we implemented several retention tactics. We improved the onboarding experience with product tours on Intercom, segmented the signups to engage with them in a more personalized way, and rolled out a newsletter campaign.
The final outcome of all our activities was proof that dev-ops are the right target for Kelp, and the feedback we gathered unveiled key insights for the product’s future development.
Results
1200
early access subscribers
500+ comments with feedback
400% increase in website traffic
One aspect of Solveo that really stood out was that they took the time to understand our product and business model. Their versatility, talent and relationships they have in the marketing space are phenomenal, which went a long way in securing our relationship. Overall we felt that Solveo was like an extension of our own team.
Vitaly Malyshev
Co-founder and CEO, Pleeco Inc.
